This "virtual newspaper for an aquatic world" contains musings, science, facts and opinions-both profound and mundane-about the River region, its people and natural resources, and their nexus to the Washington, DC scene.
Comments and other written contributions are always appreciated.

Friday, April 25, 2014

Mississippi River Basin Water Resource Weekly News

~Virtual Newspaper for an Aquatic World~

Capitol Hill Next Week - What to Watch For

Both the House and Senate were recessed over the past two weeks, and both are scheduled to reconvene next Monday afternoon. Among the limited number of items on the legislative agenda, House and Senate appropriations' leaders hope to move their 2015 fiscal year spending bills quickly to the floor (to the House floor as soon as next week). However, those hopes may not be realized, as the annual spending bills risk being caught up in policy fights. House leaders have committed to debating the spending bills under what is known as an open rule, which means that House members would not be blocked from offering specific amendments (or "riders") that either encourage or prohibit federal agencies from carrying out any number of politically problematic activities. Therefore, the appropriation measures may end up being decorated with a variety of such riders. And, ultimately, the much-hyped fast start to the appropriations process could fizzle. On the Congressional committee front, here is a link to some other House and Senate activities currently scheduled for next week that relate to Mississippi River Basin water resources.

Public Comment Period Opens for Proposed Waters of the U.S. Rule
On April 21, the Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers officially published a proposed rule to clarify the scope of Clean Water Act jurisdiction for streams and wetlands across the U.S. The proposal had been released on March 25, but was not published until last Monday. The Federal Register publication (found here as a PDF file) opened a 91-day public comment period, through July 21, during which time comments on the proposed rule may be submitted online, via email, by regular mail or by courier. Specific instructions for submitting comments can be seen in this section of the Federal Register notification (see related stories under "Water Quality," below).Noteworthy @UpperMiss Twitter Postings for the Week

Water Quality -

LEAD STORY: EPA-Army Corps Proposed Rule formally published: Clean Water Act; Definitions: Definition of “Waters of the United States” Under Clean Water Act http://ow.ly/vZJbK (PDF file of Federal Register notice)﻿

LEAD STORY: EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Monday publish their proposed rule defining "waters of the U.S." http://ow.ly/w1Fq4 (news coverage)

Wisconsin municipalities gain more time, flexibility to carry out phosphorous removal from wasterwater under new state law http://ow.ly/w7rXW

Louisiana Coastal Region-

LEAD STORY: Without much legislative resistance, historic coastal damages lawsuit against major oil companies will soon be history http://ow.ly/w4C4b (However, lawmakers appear to be backing off action against similar litigation filed by Jefferson and Plaquemines parishes http://ow.ly/w4Cz2)

First Annual Mid-South Agricultural and Environmental Law Conference; May 16, Tunica, Mississippi http://ow.ly/w5hjn Hosted by the Arkansas Bar Association, the National Sea Grant Law Center, and the National Agricultural Law Center

House Republicans face historic brain drain atop committees next year, as many as half of chairpersons could be forced to step down http://ow.ly/w4wNK

Last Words -

Click to enlarge

"We wish to suggest a structure for the salt of deoxyribose nucleic acid (D.N.A.). This structure has novel features which are of considerable biological interest." - James Watson and Francis Crick, April 25, 1953 (On that date in 1953, the magazine Nature published an article by biologists Francis Crick and James Watson, describing the "double helix" of Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid. The figure to the left is a diagrammatic representation of that double helix from that article: A Structure for Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid. Watson J.D. and Crick F.H.C. Nature 171, 737-738 (1953)).